Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 20
हिरण्यकशिपोः क्रोधः तथा देवप्रजाकदनम् — Hiraṇyakaśipu’s Wrath and the Affliction of Devas and Beings
राज्याभिषिक्तः प्रपितामहेन त्रैलोक्यनाशाय मतिं चकार । उत्साद्य धर्मान् सकलान्प्रमत्तो जित्वाहवे सोपि सुरान्समस्तान्
rājyābhiṣiktaḥ prapitāmahena trailokyanāśāya matiṃ cakāra | utsādya dharmān sakalānpramatto jitvāhave sopi surānsamastān
Zum König geweiht durch den Ahnvater (Brahmā), fasste er den Entschluss, die drei Welten zu vernichten. Vom Hochmut berauscht, stürzte er alle Formen des Dharma nieder und besiegte im Kampf auch sämtliche Devas.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pasha
Shiva Form: Bhairava
Shakti Form: Durgā
Role: destructive
Cosmic Event: incipient pralaya-like disorder in the three worlds (adharma ascendant)
FAQs
It highlights how consecrated power, when seized by ego and adharma, becomes destructive to the cosmic order; in Shaiva understanding, such pride (ahaṅkāra) veils wisdom and inevitably calls forth Shiva’s restoring grace and justice.
The verse sets the narrative backdrop for why the devas and worlds require Shiva’s protective intervention; devotion to Saguna Shiva (often through Linga worship) is presented in the Purana as the refuge that re-establishes dharma when worldly power turns tyrannical.
A practical takeaway is to counter pride and instability through daily Shiva-upāsanā—japa of the Pañcākṣarī mantra (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) and remembrance of dharma—seeking inner restraint before outer power.